中国近代翻译小说的“归化”现象及其原因探析

The "Adaptation" in Modern China's Translated Novels and Its Causes

中国近代译者抱着"启迪民智"的功能目的大量译介外国小说,极大地促进了传统小说的演进。在这个过程中,译者的主体意识和实际需要占据主导地位,具有很强的"功能"意识,译文普遍存在着用目的语国家的文化规范去化解源语文化形式的"归化"现象。这种"归化"策略的选择不管是出于自觉还是不自觉,都与译者当时的翻译目的和动机有关。德国功能派的"目的论"翻译理论主张译者应根据客户或委托人的要求,结合翻译的目的和译文读者的情况,从原作提供的多元信息中进行有选择性的翻译,其原则正可以解释中国近代翻译小说中出现的"归化"现象。

The large number of foreign novels translated into Chinese for the purpose of ＂enlightening the people＂ has dramatically impelled the evolution of traditional Chinese novels in early modern times. Translators＇ subjectivity consciousness and the then realistic demands for translation were the dominant factors in that process. Characterized by this ＂functional＂ tendency of the translators, most of the translated novels were ＂adapted＂ versions, i.e. , they tended to interpret the original culture in terms of the TL cultural norms. Whether the ＂adaptation＂ strategy was a conscious or unconscious choice, it was related to the translating purposes and motives of the then translators. According to the German functionalist ＂skopos theory＂ （ Skopostheorie）, the translator should base his/her work on the client/commissioner＇ s requirements and take into consideration the translation skopos and the readership, and then select only what accords with these in ST to translate. In this sense, the principles of skopos theory can exactly account for the ＂adaptation＂ strategy that was popular in the translation of foreign novels in early modern China.